A large, California-based lending company has officially opened an Albuquerque branch.

LoanDepot had a ceremonial ribbon cutting Friday afternoon at 8220 San Pedro Drive NE. The 3,000-square-foot space is being leased by the loan provider, which moved in Feb. 9.

This new office is the only location in New Mexico. But branch manager Walt Vieira said plans are in the works to open Santa Fe and Las Cruces branches within the next quarter.

Vieira explained loanDepot came to Albuquerque because it's the company's goal to have a presence in every state and every market.

"We’re very excited to open our branch in Albuquerque. The response has been great from the real estate industry in such a short period of time," he said.

The branch employs 12 people right now and plans on hiring about ten more in the near future, he said.

LoanDepot markets itself as the nation's fifth largest retail lender and second largest nonbank retail lender. Its services also include home purchase and refinance loans, personal loans and home equity loans.

In 2017, the company reported it had surpassed $125 billion in funding since it launched in 2010. It also reported it employs over 6,500 people companywide.